Simón (2023 film)

During the protests in Venezuela, Simón (Christian McGaffney) and his companions are arrested and tortured. Forced to flee Venezuela, he becomes an asylum seeker and heads to Miami. Immigration informs him that once he is granted asylum, he will not be able to return to his country. Simón faces both trauma and guilt and must make the decision whether to stay in Miami and start a new life or return home to face tyranny.[1][2]

• Christian McGaffney as Simón
• Roberto Jaramillo as Chucho
• Jana Nawartschi as Melissa
• Franklin Virgüez as Colonel Lugo

The director, Diego Vicentini, produced a short film of the same name about the protests in Venezuela in 2017, as part of his thesis for his master's degree in film at the Los Angeles Film School. The short was released in 2018 in eight countries and Vicentini decided to turn it into a feature film in the face of the unexpected reception. For the role of the protagonist, the director originally needed a bilingual Venezuelan in his twenties, which limited the options. Already knowing Christian McGaffney from the short film, he was sure he would be the ideal person for the role.[3] Vicentini commented that he chose the name "Simón" to "attribute Bolívar's mythology to all these young people who are anonymous".[4] In 2019, Vicentini and Marcel Rasquin began fundraising to make a feature film of the story.[3]

The shooting of the feature film coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant several logistical complications: the cast and crew were tested every three days, the use of masks was strict and the set was sterilized between scenes, representing additional and unforeseen costs for the production. In addition, there was the risk of the lead actor, Christian, getting sick. This meant that a scene set in a crowded Miami nightclub had to be modified, and instead of 250 extras, the amount in the scene was reduced to 30. The film was shot over the course of 28 days in 23 different locations.[3] Simón is the director's debut feature film.[2][5]

The prison setting was filmed in Redland, near Homestead, in southern Florida, where there is an abandoned city with deteriorating buildings. Actor Franklin Virgüez commented in an interview that he used the Stanislavski method to film the interrogation scene: when he moved from Barquisimeto to Caracas, he initially lived on a shanty house in Monte Piedad, on a hill where rats abounded and where he developed a phobia of them, so he imagined rats on Christian during scene to evoke the desired emotions.[6] Simón is Diego Vicentini's first feature film.[7][8] The director commented that the film had a total of 18 versions of the script before choosing a final version.[9]

The feature film premiered on 15 April 2023 at the Florida Film Festival in Orlando,[2][3] and it was subsequently screened at the Dallas International Film Festival.[3] The movie premiered in July 2023 at the Venezuelan Film Festival.[10]

Two days before its commercial release, it was reported that a complaint was filed against the film in Venezuela's Public Ministry to prevent it from being screened in theaters, accusing it of promoting violence in the country.[11][12] The following day, director Diego Vicentini announced that up to that date, he and his team had not received any notification or complaint against its screening in Venezuela and that the premiere was still scheduled for the same date.[12]

Simón was commercially released on 7 September 2023 in Venezuela,[13] in at least 34 theaters nationwide.[14] For its international premiere, tickets in Madrid, Buenos Aires, Santiago de Chile and New York were sold out days before its screening. In Madrid, it became the Venezuelan feature film with the largest screening in Spain, with over 1,000 tickets sold.[14][15]

Simón was nominated for the Grand Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature at the Florida Film Festival and won the Audience Award Winner for Best International Narrative Feature at the Dallas International Film Festival.[16][17] At the Venezuelan Film Festival, the film received multiple awards, including "Best Feature", "Best Director", "Best Supporting Actor" (for Franklin Virgüez), "Best Cinematography", "Best Editing" and "Best Screenplay".[10][18][19]

The Venezuelan Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences chose Simón to represent Venezuela in the 38th Goya Awards.[20]

Luis Bond, from Diario las Américas, gave the film a 4 out of 5 rating and wrote: "It talks to us about the need to forgive —and forgive ourselves— to move forward, pointing out the fine line between running away and moving forward, resignation and acceptance, forgiveness and forgetting".[21] Abhishek Sharma, in Film Threat, rated the movie 8/10 and said: "Simón leaves us with a strong message that relays the hard-hitting reflection on reality."[22] In Hoy Sale Cine, Alejandro Turdo offered the description: "Simon is a rough depiction of the Venezuelan political and humanitarian crisis, but a necessary one for sure. It takes a clear stand when it comes to support the fight against authoritarian governments and most importantly, never stop fighting for change." He gave the film a 9/10 score.[23] Mike Massie wrote: "It’s a rare theatrical examination of tremendously important international conflicts and notions, which ought to be seen, even if the entertainment value of this specific project is medial."[24] In The Independent Critic, Richard Propes stated that "McGaffney gives a riveting performance destined to be one of the year's finest."[25] Alan French, from Sunshine State Cineplex, wrote: "With a story as important as this one, Simón needed to show the true horrors of the dissident experience. Along the way, Vicentini proves himself one of the best young filmmakers on the rise."[26]

By August 2023, Simón had a 100% perfect score in Rotten Tomatoes. According to El Nacional, it was arguably the first time that a Venezuelan film achieved said feat.[27]

The film was not chosen as the country's candidate for the Academy Awards, obtaining 10 votes in favor, 12 against and two abstentions. Diego Vicentini stated that he was disappointed with the decision, arguing that the film had the merits to be a candidate and denounced irregularities during the selection process, declaring that he and his team received reports that part of the selection committee, traditionally made up of members of the Venezuelan filmmakers' guild, consisted of unknown persons this year. The reports also described the debate as irregular, with a block of members unwilling to listen to arguments in favor of Simón and even silencing someone who wanted to speak in favor of the film. In addition, the committee included Ray Ugencio, first assistant director of the film chosen as a candidate, The Shadow of the Sun, creating a conflict of interest.[28][29]

• 38th Goya Awards

• Official website
• Simón at IMDb
• Simón at Film Affinity
• "Festival de Cine en Florida: venezolano triunfa con la película Simón". Telemundo Orlando (31) (in Spanish). 20 April 2023.
• "Diego Vicentini: "Simón muestra heridas silenciosas y profundas que todos compartimos"". El Estímulo (in Spanish). 7 September 2023.
• "'Simón': ¿Por qué el chavismo ha permitido su proyección?". El Estímulo (in Spanish). 11 September 2023.
• "Franklin Virgüez: 'Al gobierno no le conviene prohibir Simón'". El Estímulo (in Spanish). 16 September 2023.
• Branger, Carolina Jaimes (30 September 2023). "La eliminación de "Simón" en los Premios Óscar". Runrunes.